rc47

I got a 4 and did fine. Just make sure you're personal statement and sample essay are well written.

Two key points that I think really helped my application a lot: 1. Get some young professors to write your recs. Some of their friends may be on the adcoms. If you're a Sophomore or Junior in college right now, get to know your younger professors really well and do whatever it takes to impress them. 2. Try to be a little humble in your personal statement. You want them to know that you believe you can make a great contribution to the literature, but also show that you have a lot of respect for the scholars who came before you.

You can absolutely negotiate, especially if you have a better offer from another school. I had a friend do so last year, and he got a $5,000 per year increase. The worst that can happen is they'll tell you no. That being said, though, you definitely don't want to let a difference in stipend determine where you get your PhD, unless you are really concerned that what they're giving you is not enough to make ends meet.

I was at Chicago last year and my impression was that they had the wait-list figured out and it was just a question of how many admitted students would enroll. I think you're looking for people in your sub-field to go elsewhere and then you may get a spot. Chicago also encourages people to let them know early if they're not coming, so your odds are not too bad. But I would definitely let them know you're interested. They do have a very good program there.

Learning a language is basically useful for fieldwork. If you're going to spend extensive time learning Russian, I don't understand why you wouldn't do fieldwork in Russia as part of your dissertation, which would also help you keep up your skills. If you aren't planning on doing fieldwork or reading a lot of primary sources in Russian, then I wouldn't devote time to learning it.

Methods makes sense, quantitative and possibly qualitative too.

Last year Duke accepted more applicants a few days after they contacted the first admits.

"It is widely believed"?- so your argument basically rests on your perceptions of speculation. I do not know as much about UCSD, but three professors leaving certainly does not constitute "mass exodus." Berkeley is adding faculty and in relatively good shape because of its departmental endowment. Many of the rumors circulating around about the UC polisci departments come from people without credible information and do not stand up to close scrutiny. I suggest that you stop using them as your basis for expertise.

"Mass exodus from California schools"? I can really only speak of the two programs I know best, Berkeley and UCSD, but who exactly has left in this mass exodus? Berkeley is supported by an endowment along with university funds, and they made a new hire last fall. UCSD remains a thriving young program with some of the best professors in the country. True, California is going through some tough times balancing its budget, but the political science departments at these UC schools are much better off than you would think.

Usually not. Schools really have no incentive to tell people that they've been turned down, so sometimes it can take a while. You may still be on the waiting list, though, but some schools don't have them. You can probably figure out who does and doesn't by looking for waiting list announcements in the results from last year.

Haha no way. I've heard of people putting the wrong school's name in their SOPs and still getting in.

This is one view, and you can certainly succeed as a comparativist without focusing on a specific region. However, if you want to claim expertise on a region or country, you will be criticized if you can't speak the language. You have plenty of time to get fluent while you're in graduate school though, so I wouldn't sweat it right now. Also, if you apply with a focus on a specific region or country, it can help or hurt you depending on the program.

No, try not to worry right now. Last year I got accepted at four of the top 10, all by e-mail around Feb 10. In the next three weeks I was rejected from 7 other schools, but I know people who were admitted during this period. No school contacted me before they gave me their final decision, and I think that was normal for most admits. My best advice is to spend the next couple of weeks making sure that you have a solid back-up plan in case nothing works out. This will help pass the time and will make the whole process much easier for you if you don't get an offer that you like. Good luck to everyone!

You should definitely apply to the California publics if you are interested in Asia. Be very careful when looking at the financial situations facings different programs. First, many of the top private schools were hit hard by the recession and still have a long road to recovery. Second, schools often do not treat all their departments the same, so you should look at how the political science departments specifically have been affected at the universities that you are interested in. As ipsqq suggested, ask tough questions. But I think that it would be a serious mistake to avoid any school based on something that you read on this board.